1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to refrigerators for cold storage of food, and more particularly, to a refrigerator for managing food by using RFID, in which food can be stored and managed in a storage space which has an optimum storage condition in the refrigerator by using RFID devices.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Depending on refrigerators, there are refrigerators that have a separate fresh storage chamber for the user to use selectively in maintaining freshness of the food stored therein. There are many kinds of food stored in the refrigerator. Because the user can not remember all kinds of the food in the refrigerator, the user is required to open/close a door of the refrigerator every time for determining the food stored therein. The verification of the food stored in the refrigerator by such a method causes waste of power following opening/closing of the refrigerator door, and decomposition of food of which a storage time period is passed, causing waste of food.
In order to solve such a problem, the inventor discloses an invention titled “a device for controlling display of food stored in a refrigerator in Korea Patent Registration No. 0377741, for determining kinds of food stored in the refrigerator from an outside of the refrigerator.
Referring to FIG. 1, a related art refrigerator is provided with an oscillation circuit 10 for generating a fixed frequency, a frequency demultiplying circuit 11 for demultiplying the frequency from the oscillation circuit 10 into a signal of a particular frequency, to generate time, time counting means 12 for receiving the signal from the demultiplying circuit and counting time, day counting means 13 for changing a day if a preset time comes with reference to the time counted at the time counting means 12, storage means 14 for storing various kinds of information on food stored in the refrigerator, a selection key unit 15 for a user to apply various kinds of information on kinds, amounts, time periods to be stored, and so on of the food to be stored thereto, a food storage number of days/time display unit 16 for a CPU 19 to renew and display a number of days and time of storage of food at fixed intervals, an expiration date passed food display unit 17 for displaying food having the expiration date passed, a stored food sequential display unit 18 for renewing and displaying information on food stored in the storage means 14 at fixed intervals, and a CPU 19 for displaying date/time of food stored, food having the expiration date passed, and food in storage presently in a sequence based on information on food stored in the storage means 14.
By using the foregoing system, the related art refrigerator stores information on stored food the user inputted personally through the selection key unit 15 in the storage means 14, and displays information on time/date of storage of food, on food of which deadline is passed, and on food in storage presently.
There has been inconvenience of manual input of names of a plurality of kinds of food in order to obtain information on food stored in the related art refrigerator. Since the selection key unit 15 is required to have an input capability similar to a keyboard for the input, the selection key unit 15 becomes complicate to increase a production cost of the refrigerator. Moreover, the input takes a substantial time period of the user.
Furthermore, because the related art refrigerator simply stores the various kinds of food in the refrigerator, and manages the food according to information displayed on the display unit 16, 17, and 18, there is a problem in that freshness, taste, and nutrition of the various kinds of food is degraded as the stored time period passes by.